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Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Leadership of Lemko Organizations Passes to Next Generation

by Diana Howansky Reilly
(Reprinted with permission)

Clifton, NJ, USA –
October 29, 2013 – At
the national conventions of two U.S.-based Lemko organizations this month,
elections resulted in the selection of new Presidents, signaling the
organizations’ continuing growth and development as the baton of leadership
passed from the older to the younger generation. This past Saturday, October
26th, members of the Organization for the Defense of Lemkivshchyna (Orhanizatsiia Oborony Lemkivshchyny, OOL) elected Mark Howansky
as the new President of their National Board, while on October 6th, members of
the Lemko Research Foundation, Inc. (LRF) elected Andriy Khomyk as their new
President.

Calling
the elections “historic,” Mr. Khomyk said at the OOL convention banquet on the
evening of October 26th that this handover of responsibilities would allow the
next generation of leaders to build on the great work and knowledge of their
predecessors, with whom they shared deep emotion for their ancestral land of
Lemkivshchyna and Lemko issues. Mr. Howansky said in his acceptance speech that
he would strive to sincerely listen to and incorporate the ideas of every
member, old and new, stressing the need for all Lemkos to work together moving
forward.

Mr.
Khomyk, born in Lviv, was raised by parents Maria Odrekhivska and Lemko
Ukrainian poet Basil Khomyk, who came from the Lemko villages of Wilka and
Myscowa, respectively, before their deportation to Soviet Ukraine in the
1940’s. He attended the famous Lviv Children's Art School, where he later
taught, and graduated from the Lviv College of Decorative and Applied Art, as
well as the Institute of Applied and Decorative Arts. He was active in the Lviv
association “Lemkivshchyna,” developing and leading its youth chapter. His
artwork, which brought back to life the forgotten technique of painting on
glass, led him to the United States, where he eventually moved in the 1990’s.
Mr. Khomyk is a member of OOL’s Yonkers, NY branch and creator of OOL’s first
website. He currently lives in Norwalk, CT with his wife Tatyana; his son Vasyl
attends Richmond University and his daughter Olena attends the Massachusetts
Institute of Art and Design. Mr. Khomyk replaces former LRF president, Steven
Howansky (Mark Howansky’s father), who passed away earlier this year, in
February 2013.

Born
to parents who were relocated from the Lemko villages of Zdynia and Smerekowiec
under the 1947 forced resettlement campaign “Operation Vistula,” Mr. Howansky
grew up in Yonkers, NY, where he was active in Ukrainian-American organizations
from a young age, including St. Michael’s Saturday School of Ukrainian Studies
and the Ukrainian-American Youth Association (CYM). An avid sports supporter,
he has held numerous positions ranging from player to club president with the
Yonkers “Krylati” Sports Club, the New York “Kozaks” Hockey Club, the Ukrainian
Sports Federation of U.S.A. and Canada (USCAK), and the International Ukrainian
Football Tournament (IUFT). Mr. Howansky holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering
from Harvard University and a master’s degree in business administration from
New York University. A member of OOL’s Irvington, NJ branch, he currently lives
in Green Brook, NJ with his wife Maria Hrywna, who is also of Lemko descent,
and their young daughter Nadya.

Mark
Howansky takes over the reins from former OOL President, Zenon Halkowycz, who
led the organization for the past 14 years and now holds honored member status
in recognition for all of his work. At the OOL convention banquet, Mr. Halkowycz
thanked the members of the organization for their partnership over the years,
as well as expressed appreciation to the SUMA (Yonkers) Federal Credit Union
and the Selfreliance Ukrainian American Federal Credit Union in Jersey City, NJ
for the monetary gifts they donated to OOL that evening to help its future
work.

OOL’s
origins reach back to September 1933, when a committee was formed to send books
to the Lemko region (located in the Carpathian Mountains in current
southeastern Poland) and strengthen education through traveling libraries.
Among OOL’s goals stated in its bylaws are to organize Lemko Ukrainians in
their communities, foster their language and traditions, conduct cultural and
educational work, and provide humanitarian support to natives of the Lemko
region and their descendants, including donating financial assistance to
schools, churches, artistic ensembles, and educational institutions.

During
OOL’s growth in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, the Lemko Research Foundation
was founded under its auspices and incorporated as a non-profit research
organization to conduct publishing activity. The Lemko Research Foundation
promotes the study of the history, literature, art, and traditions of the Lemko
region, with the official goal of preserving the identity and culture of Lemko
Ukrainians by disseminating information to the public through written
materials.

For
more information about both OOL and LRF, including details about the new
leadership boards, information about upcoming meetings, and how to join as a
member, see the website: www.lemko-ool.com. For direct questions,
email editor@lemko-ool.com.

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